Sean Reinert has opened up about the tensions between he and Cynic co-founder Paul Masvidal, which led him to say that the band had split last week.
He’s revealed that the situation led him to drink, and once he’d dealt with that issue he concluded the situation was “too dirty” for him to continue.
His announcement came as news to Masvidal, who afterwards said he hadn’t been consulted before drummer Reinart spoke out, and vowed the band would continue.
Reinart tells Metal Sucks: “The fact that we made it through the last three shows was amazing. There was so much tension, it was apparent to me that the bad just outweighs the good. Rather than play shows where it’s obvious on stage that things aren’t going well, I’d rather leave it on a high note.
“It’s about serving the music. When I can’t enjoy that part, that I can’t get past. Most things I’m willing to stand – but when the music starts to suffer, it’s just a bad thing to me.”
He adds: “In the past I’ve been passive in business issues. Paul’s been more of a go-getter and he can be overbearing. It was kind of my fault for letting him take over the business side of things. Over the years it cost us time and money, and I can only blame myself.”
Reinart accepts that he and Masvidal have such a long history together that they “know how to push each others’ buttons.” But he continues: “I found myself escaping through alcohol. It didn’t affect my playing or performances but it affected my physical being and my emotional being – I was just checking out.
“I’ve been sober for a year and I’ve been recognising and feeling all the stuff I’ve kind of let slide. It was too dirty for me. I couldn’t look past it.”
